juno awards 2026 is driving a weekend mobilization in Hamilton as the city prepares to welcome more than 22, 000 visitors to the TD Coliseum, with enhanced street-cleaning and a high-profile field of nominees choosing not to attend. City crews are intensifying sidewalk sweeping, litter pickup and deployment of electric litter vacuums in key corridors. The absentee list, which includes Justin Bieber, Tate McRae and The Weeknd, raises questions about how the ceremony will play to a mostly local crowd when winners are announced at 8 p. m. ET on Sunday.
Juno Awards 2026: Who’s skipping and why
Justin Bieber and Tate McRae, each nominated multiple times, will not attend the ceremony at the TD Coliseum; the Weeknd is also confirmed absent. The Weeknd arrives at the weekend with five nominations — winning three of them would move his lifetime total above Anne Murray’s 24, based on his 22 trophies today. Tate McRae’s six nominations are notable in light of recent promotional appearances outside Canada. The decision by these high-profile nominees to skip the event has sharpened attention on who will accept awards in person and how the show will acknowledge absent winners.
City braces — cleaning, crews and Gluttons
Hamilton has readied its downtown cleanliness team to operate seven days a week and to focus extra effort on high-traffic areas near venues. The city is not hiring temporary staff for the weekend, instead relying on a flexible core crew that adjusts schedules and uses overtime where needed. Joel McCormick, the city’s manager of waste collections, said, “This work also aligns with the city’s regular spring cleanup” and called the event prep “consistent with typical operations. ” He added, “The team adjusts schedules and uses overtime where needed to maintain a clean and welcoming environment. ”
Operational details include manual crews, street and sidewalk sweepers, and a fleet of six Glutton electric litter vacuums that can pick up cups and cigarette butts. The machines are wrapped with local art designs — a visible part of the city’s push to keep the downtown core clean and vibrant for incoming visitors.
City planners point to a 2023 survey of 1, 358 residents in which 97 percent rated littering as a moderate or big problem; that feedback prompted an increase in sidewalk sweeping and litter pickup to seven days a week, a change that is now being applied to event preparation.
What happens next
Expect intensified downtown cleaning operations through the weekend and targeted efforts around the TD Coliseum as crowds arrive for the ceremony at 8 p. m. ET on Sunday. With several headline nominees absent, producers and city officials will watch how the evening unfolds in person and on-air, and how winners handle awards given in absentia. Observers will also be tracking whether the Weeknd’s nominations translate into wins that alter the historical record.
juno awards 2026 will test both the city’s logistics planning and the ceremony’s ability to deliver a memorable night even as some of Canada’s biggest names stay away.
